# Spanish Cedar vs. African Sapele



## metinemre (Jul 26, 2014)

*

Now... Spanish cedar isn`t the best material???
*
*Taken from Custom finely crafted humidors for sale by Michael Dixon
 Spanish Cedar vs. African Sapele*

Spanish Cedar has been used during this century and the last for cigar box construction. It has always been the wood of choice for curing and aging cigars. Perhaps the aroma of Cedar blends with the tobacco and helps to enhance its aroma. It is definitely a tradition that is steeped in the history of cigar making itself. Perhaps one of the reasons it was used initially was because of its availability at the time. It is a dominant Latin American species and literally grows in all countries from Mexico to Chile. The only exception is Argentina which is too temperate to sustain its growth cycle. In any event it is still preferred by cigar manufacturers. During the aging and curing process of the leaves (aging) and finished cigars (curing) Cedar is used in the storage containers and warehouse interior walls.
 However we no longer use Spanish Cedar in our humidors. Cedar has a tendency to bleed a sap-gum resin when exposed to heat. This gummy resin is actually inside the wood itself and may not surface for several months. So in order to avoid this potential problem, we use Sapele on all interior surfaces. Sapele does not contain a resin, smells like Spanish Cedar, is much denser than Cedar and is more stable.


----------



## KungFumeta (Aug 7, 2014)

Interesting theory. The mixup between curing and aging and the fact that i've never seen or heard anyone complain about SC bleeding resin makes me dubious though...


----------



## tmoran (Mar 25, 2014)

^^^^ I'm with him. Never heard of the resin thing. Sounds like a solution to a problem that doesn't exist, and also sounds to me like somebody got a good deal on some African Sapele.


----------



## MDSPHOTO (Sep 10, 2013)

So there ya go.

CA Battle of The Boxes
Michael Dixon Quilted Maple Box

Veneer: Quilted maple; Interior: Spanish cedar, African Sapele; Capacity: 100 cigars; Humidification: Humigar System (one unit); Details: Gold-plated brass fixtures, dividers, analog hygrometer; Cost: $795; Contact: (301) 432-6131; Score: B-

This attractive box has many attributes, but niggling problems kept it from scoring higher in our ranking. It has a brilliant look, with a bright orange veneer of quilted maple that shimmers in the light and vividly contrasts with the ebony borders, which are made of bloodwood. However, there were problems with the locking system and major difficulties with the lid. After functioning properly during the treating period, the locking mechanism failed in the first week of official testing. It continued to turn, but was not hooking to the lid, making it impossible to secure the lid. The lid itself was no longer flush with the box, forming a small gap in the seal. These problems could have been caused, in part, by the hinges, which appeared unusually small for a humidor of this size. (We encountered similar problems with the Michael Dixon humidor rated in the 1999 review.) The problem with the lid didn't seem to affect the humidity, however, as levels were fairly consistent throughout the test.


----------



## Merovius (Sep 11, 2013)

MDSPHOTO said:


> The problem with the lid didn't seem to affect the humidity, however, as levels were fairly consistent throughout the test.


Those reviews are pretty dated (2003) and Michael has made several improvements to his shop and process since. I have 2 of these humidors and I have not experienced any of the issues mentioned by CA. I could not be happier with my purchases.

First is a 30 Ct. in Spalted Maple. Ive been able to get as many as 50 sticks in there.



Second is a custom spec job in Macassar Ebony, holds roughly 150.





Both perform flawlessly and doing business with Michael has been an absolute pleasure. Sapele (Janka Hardness: 1,410 lbf (6,280 N)) and Spanish Cedar (Janka Hardness: 600 lbf (2,670 N)) have the same aroma.


----------



## SmokinSpider (May 12, 2010)

From what I gather they are both members of the Mahogany family and if the cedar has not been properly dried it may ooze resin. 

They are nice looking humidors but rather expensive though, I would go Waxingmoon.

Tyler that Spalted Maple is gorgeous, almost looks like marble.


----------



## SeanTheEvans (Dec 13, 2013)

@Merovius, those are some fantastic boxes. That small one is probably one of the best looking humidors I've ever seen, quite impressive! :tu


----------



## profanitypete (Jul 18, 2014)

This is an interesting idea, although I would need to research it extensively before I made the jump. I am starting to make some wineadors with a friend who is a master woodworker (the BFA he got in woodworking and furniture design had an entire week devoted to different types of screws - not fasteners, screws) and I would trust with any question about wood or the process of milling/finishing it, and he had some serious concerns about it's stability.


----------



## tmoran (Mar 25, 2014)

tmoran said:


> ^^^^ I'm with him. Never heard of the resin thing. Sounds like a solution to a problem that doesn't exist, and also sounds to me like somebody got a good deal on some African Sapele.


I completely forgot about this thread, but something funny happened. For some reason I was checking out the humidor my XO got me last Christmas. It has an Old Virginia Tobacco stamp, since that is where she bought it, but it says it was made by Michael Dixon. So I am guessing my humi has African Sapele. It seals really well, and I couldn't tell the difference in the smell between that and Spanish Cedar.

So, I suppose my snarky comment was uncalled for. :spank:


----------

